MAC: Canton joins exSEL Network

Canton is among nine Massachusetts school districts that will be participating in a new program to teach students social and emotional skills, including perseverance, empathy, self-awareness, and healthy decision-making. Canton School Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Fischer-Mueller, in a recent news release announcing Canton’s entrance into the exSEL Network, said, “It is essential that we support the acquisition of these important skills which help to define student success beyond their pre-K through 12 education journey.”

On Sunday, September 24, Canton Veterans Agent Tony Andreotti held a ceremony to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War in the Canton High School auditorium. The commemoration honored all United States veterans who served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces between November 1, 1955, and May 15, 1975, regardless of location. There are over 500 veterans living in the town of Canton who served during this period of time. Approximately 75 of them attended.

Here is an interesting petition before the Zoning Board of Appeals: Cathleen Sheehan would like to raze her existing single-family dwelling at 447 Bolivar Street and replace it with four single-family dwellings.

According to DPW Superintendent Mike Trotta, the town of Canton has 250 miles of roads, 56 miles of drain pipe, 2,300 catch basins, 270 storm outfalls, 2,250 manholes, five dams, 20 town parking lots, and 18 parks.

Liliane Bettencourt, the L’Oréal Cosmetics heiress and the world’s richest woman, recently died at age 94. According to Forbes Magazine, her estimated fortune is worth $39.5 billion.

According to Bill Galvin, chairman of the Board of Assessors, the total taxable valuation of the town of Canton is $4.5 billion.

The average cost to teach a student in a public school in Massachusetts is $14,942. The town of Hull’s per-pupil spending is the highest on the south shore at $17,671.

On July 1, 2018, the state of Massachusetts will join a number of other states where adults can buy, sell, and smoke marijuana legally.

The Reebok property is being actively marketed for sale by CBRE/New England, and it is currently under consideration for “priority development site” status in accordance with the state’s Chapter 43D program. According to a recent news report in the Canton Citizen, CBRE has already hosted showings for more than 40 interested companies, institutions, and investors.

There is a wage petition that would bolster the state’s minimum wage from its current $11 to $12 in 2019 and $1 thereafter until 2022 for a new $15-an-hour minimum. Tipped employees would also see a gradual boost in their minimum cash wage from $3.75 this year to $9 in 2022.

Attorney General Maura Healy approved 21 petitions for the 2018 ballot. One of these measures initiates a paid leave plan, in which covered workers would receive up to 16 weeks of family leave and 26 weeks of medical leave at 90 percent of their average earnings, up to $1,000 per week.

Selectmen have recommended to the town of Norwood that the “no turn on red” restriction at the intersection of University Avenue and Dedham Street be only in effect Monday through Friday but lifted for the weekend. It is the right turn coming from Norwood on University Ave. at the Granger company onto Dedham Street.

From 1953 to 1978 all hurricanes were given female names. Following complaints about gender equality, male names were introduced in 1979. The World Meteorological Organization now uses a system that alternates alphabetically between predetermined male and female names. Six lists are used in rotation. So the 2017 list will be used again in 2023. The names of hurricanes that cause severe loss of life or property damage are “retired” out of respect by the WMO. So far, 84 storm names have been retired.

Ion the Ball recently sent another donation of $18,750 to the town treasury for use of a billboard advertisement on I-95. This is one of several payments made to the town by Ion the Ball over the course of the year.

Kathleen Szymasnski recently donated $1,000 to the Canton Council on Aging.

The Condors of the EMass Senior Softball League recently won the Metro Over 65 Division for the second straight year with a record of 23 wins and seven losses. The hitting and fielding stars for the Condors were Cantonites Cab Devoll and Joe DeFelice, who each batted over .700 in the playoffs. EMass senior softball is made up of over 350 players in five age divisions from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire. Anyone over the age of 55 who would like to play in 2018 should go to the EMass website to sign up.

On September 15, Lowell High School defeated Cambridge Rindge & Latin 62-61 in a football game. Each team scored four touchdowns in the fourth and final quarter. With two seconds to go, a Lowell player kicked a 24-yard field goal for the go-ahead score. It’s pretty amazing to score 123 points in a football game, no defense!